Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) argued it is “immoral” for Republicans to reject a border deal to help former President Trump.
“I didn’t come here to have the president as a boss or a candidate as a boss. I came here to pass good, solid policy,” Tillis said Thursday, first reported by NBC News. “It is immoral for me to think you looked the other way because you think this is the linchpin for President Trump to win.”
Members on both sides of the aisle are upset with Trump’s attempt to kill the border deal to deny President Biden a legislative win. His recent remarks calling for GOP members to oppose a border deal that isn’t H.R. 2 have complicated things for the Senate.
With two solid wins for Trump in Iowa and New Hampshire and a path toward becoming the Republican presidential nominee, Trump’s allies in the Senate are attempting to kill the border package. That could endanger future aid for Ukraine in its war against Russia, which has been tied to such a deal.
The White House and the Biden administration officials got involved in negotiations in mid-December. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) argued that the Biden administration is “probably feeling the heat” from the public and wants to address the border issue as Biden ramps up his reelection efforts.
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) called the effort to kill the bill “appalling.” Romney argued that there is an issue at the southern border and anyone running for president should be attempting to solve it now — instead of solving it later and taking credit for it down the road.
Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) has reportedly floated the idea of separating the border and Ukraine sections of Biden’s request, but others say McConnell will stand behind pairing the border aid with other foreign aid.